LatAm-FINGERS trial participants reported measurable improvements in thinking skills after taking part in a multi-country prevention study presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference. The study, known as LatAm-FINGERS, enrolled about 1,200 adults aged 60 to 77 across 12 Latin American jurisdictions and tested a culturally adapted package of interventions — including exercise, nutrition counselling and cognitive training — against basic health advice. Among attendees viewing a participant testimonial, Isabel Beltre described regained independence after completing the programme.
The Latin American trial builds on an earlier protocol first developed in Finland, the FINGER study, created by Dr. Miia Kivipelto of the Karolinska Institute. FINGER combined multiple risk-reduction strategies and reported a modest overall cognitive advantage in the intervention group. Subsequent adaptations such as the U.S. POINTER study produced smaller effects, prompting investigators to explore whether tailoring interventions to regional risk profiles could increase impact.
Dr. Lucía Crivelli, the study’s lead author, said the Latin American trial adjusted dietary recommendations and exercise delivery to local conditions across Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay. Compared with its control arm, LatAm-FINGERS produced a 0.11 difference in z-score measures of cognition — a change the authors described as statistically significant and larger than earlier FINGER replications. The trial cohort had lower average formal education and higher cardiometabolic risk than participants in some prior studies, and investigators noted cognitive gains were more evident among women than men, a finding highlighted by Dr. Claudia Suemoto.
Experts including Dr. Gill Livingston, who directs work for the Lancet Commission on dementia prevention, said the results reinforce the value of targeting modifiable risks most prevalent in a population. Limitations remain: the trial ran for two years and did not measure dementia incidence, and scaling intensive interventions in routine care poses logistical challenges. Investigators propose using biomarkers such as emerging blood tests to assess biological impact over shorter timeframes and argue that a mix of personalised interventions and public policy addressing population-level risks will be required to translate trial benefits into broad dementia prevention.
